


this is it (is it, though?)

by bella_sprezzatura



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Getting Together, Hogwarts Seventh Year, a bit of swearing and lots of banter, implied wolfstar
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-31
Updated: 2020-01-31
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:28:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22489459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bella_sprezzatura/pseuds/bella_sprezzatura
Summary: She wanted him to kiss her. This was it. He started to lean down and she rose onto her toes to meet him halfway. His hand had moved from her chin to rest at the nape of her neck and she rested her palm on his chest to lean into him. Her lips were only inches from his…'Prongs! You there? We've got to-'The door was thrust open and the rush of light blinded her. She flinched in surprise, a gasp frozen on her lips as she realised James had fallen to the floor.'Ouch.'This was not it.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter
Comments: 8
Kudos: 61





	this is it (is it, though?)

**Author's Note:**

> i originally wanted to include this as a flashback for my wip but decided to have it stand on its own instead! hope you enjoy and please let me know what you think :)

_first_

(friday / 7.02PM)

The Divination Corridor was emitting large clouds of black smoke and a horridly rancid smell at an impressively steady rate. Filch, while grumbling about impropriety and corporeal punishment, angrily stalked down the empty hallway towards the burning sensation.

At his leave, three heads popped out from around the corner.

'Alright, lads. That's once.'

'Thank you, Captain Obvious.'

'Shut it, Wormtail. This is supposed to be a covert mission.'

'Me? What about Padfoot? Stating the obvious like we can't all see what's going on.'

'Both of you be quiet! He's coming back.'

In an instant, the three of them were gone again. Filch and Mrs Norris were indeed making a second trip down what was still an empty hallway. He walked with purpose, evidently trying to find something, or perhaps someone. Another rather loud explosion from the Divination Corridor caught his attention and off he ran, back the way he came.

At his leave, three heads popped out from around the corner once again.

'And that's twice.'

'Right on schedule.'

'30 seconds, starting now.'

Three of the four Marauders were crouched around the corner looking towards Filch's retreating figure. Peter was kneeling on the floor with the map in his hands. His eyes were glued to it now that the caretaker had turned another corner to fight the smoking classrooms. Sirius was above him, reaching around Peter's figure to look over at the results of their mischief with a wicked grin on his face. Remus stood above them both at his full height, staring diligently at his watch.

'Time's up.'

'Nothing incoming.'

'Brill.'

The three of them tumbled out from their observation point and continued briskly in the opposite direction.

After a few minutes, they came to a stop near the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower. 'Where's Prongs?' Remus asked, slightly worried now.

'I don't see him anywhere on here,' replied Peter.

'What do you mean you don't see him? Where could he have possibly gone?' At Sirius' question there was a brief pause as they looked at each other, thinking hard. Then, in a matching instant, they all wore the exact same gleeful expression and said, 'The Hiding Closet!' And off they went, racing down the hallway.

'I reckon he must be just hiding from Filch, probably doesn't want to risk that precious Head Boy badge of his,' Sirius said with a snicker. The other two laughed.

'As if the risk of getting caught would stop him,' started Remus. 'Something must have spooked him, or maybe Lily took a turn about the room and he couldn't hold himself together.' They all laughed again.

'Either way, he must be in there. It's still the only place we can't manage to map,' Peter said, stuffing said map back into his pockets.

With that, the three of them skidded to a halt in front of the Hiding Closet (so named simply on account of how many times they had used it to make themselves scarce).

Sirius quickly moved to yank the door open. 'Prongs! You there? We've got to-'

James himself, who had been leaning on the door whilst hiding in the closet, tumbled out of it as soon as the door opened and landed flat on the floor. 'Ouch.' James complained, but made no effort to get up, only turning his head to stare down his mates. 'Thanks for the warning, lads. I really appreciate it, truly.' They only laughed in reply.

'Oh my goodness! James, are you alright?'

At the sound of another voice coming from inside the closet, the three of them instantly looked up to come face to face with Lily Evans who was carefully emerging from said closet and staring worriedly down at James who was still on the floor. 'Just peachy, Evans,' he replied.

Remus, Sirius, and Peter were staring at her completely gobsmacked. 'Lily, what are you doing here?' asked Remus. 'Seems pretty obvious to me,' whispered Peter with a snigger. He immediately sobered at the look on Lily's face. 'Shut it, Wormtail,' muttered James from his spot on the floor. The beep of Remus' watch seemed to snap them out of their surprise and alert them back to the task at hand.

'2 minutes.'

'Lovely seeing you, Evans, but we're extremely busy with private business right now so if you could just-' Sirius teased and then waved her off as if to shoo her away, all the while trying to pull James up from the ground.

'Oh, 'private business' you say? Well I wouldn't want to interrupt…' She replied with a wicked grin of her own and a sparkle in her eyes. 'I guess I should probably avoid the Divination Corridor on my way back to the Tower?'

'You definitely should,' replied Peter. 'If she goes now there should be no trouble,' he finished with a pointed look at James before turning his head back towards the map, which was in his hands again.

'Alright, then. Potter, I'll just see you later?' He winked at her from his position on the floor and she gave him a small wave before turning on her heel and walking back to the Gryffindor Tower.

'You should probably also avoid the Ravenclaw Tower!' Remus yelled after her. 'Thanks for the heads up!' She yelled back as she turned to playfully salute them before going on her way.

'Alright, you've got 27 seconds left to explain.'

'Yeah, what the bloody hell was that?'

James groaned and put his head in his hands. 'Um, Prongs?' Remus asked. 'Why are you still on the floor?'

'She touched my hair,' he replied and proceeded to repeatedly slam his forehead against the hard stone floor of the 7th Floor Corridor.

_second_

(friday / 7.39PM)

'You know, the more I think about it the more I realise that this is actually all your fault!'

As soon as they had returned to the 7th Year Boys' Dorm in Gryffindor Tower, James had made a beeline straight for the shower. Sirius, dutiful friend that he was had waited until he could hear the water running before bursting with laughter at his friend's misfortune. He had laid down on his bed tossing and turning with belly-rupturing giggles for a good ten minutes before composing himself again. Peter and Remus were sat on the floor in front of Sirius' bed and were fulfilling the last phase of the plan which had required some swift wandwork. They had only just wrapped up when James suddenly blasted right out of the bathroom yelling about how his three best mates were to blame.

'Catch yourself on!'

'How do you figure that?'

'As if!'

'Well, lads, its like this,' James started, as he paced back and forth waving his hands about as he spoke, wearing only his pants. 'I was in the closet with her. Just me and her. In the closet! Together! And we're talking and she's laughing. Then she tells me that she proper fancies me. Just as I'm thinking I might finally have an actual, real chance with her… I lean in to kiss her and lo and behold! The bloody door opens and next thing I know I'm on the floor. Hence, your fault!' He was now sitting on the edge of his bed, across the room from the others.

'Hence, you're a fucking idiot!' Remus yelled back at him.

'What? Me?'

'Yes, you!' Sirius replied. 'Moony's right! This is all your fault because you're a fucking idiot! Of course she bloody well proper fancies you! We noticed quite some time ago actually, Prongs. I still cannot believe you haven't kissed her yet…'

'Alright, lay off him.' Peter was always first to jump in to defend James. 'Come on, Prongs. You took her to Hogsmeade last weekend, surely you must have realised how much she fancies you? You even told us that she said she had such a lovely time with you.'

'Yeah, well… I cocked it all up didn't I? I did so well with her on the weekend and I knew I'd ruin it first chance I got so I bloody left her alone all week because I was too afraid to face her!'

'Alright, I take it back. He's an idiot.'

Remus had finally taken pity on James and moved to sit beside him on his bed. The boy in question now had his face in his hands. 'Listen, James. She does proper fancy you. She does. I know she does. Nothing you do is going to change that, yeah? I mean, she already knows you’re an idiot and she fancies you anyways. There's not much else to it than that.'

Sirius and Peter had now moved over to the floor in front of the other two. 'I know I'm being stupid, alright? But its just… Every time I think she might actually want me to kiss her, I get so close before I remember how she used to hated me. She's rejected me so many times, lads. So many times. I just can't seem to get over the idea that I might never be good enough for her.'

'Things were different then, yeah?' Even Sirius had taken a soft tone with James, something he very rarely did. 'You apologised for the way you treated her back then and she apologised for the things she said. But she never hated you, that I'm sure of. I'm willing to bet that she liked you all along but was just too afraid to show it. But she's showing it now, mate.'

'Sirius is right. You've got to go for it with her, James. She's the only girl you have ever wanted to be with. She's the only one you've ever talked about this way. This has been a long time coming. And, yeah, maybe you've cocked it right up more than a few times, but that's just it, isn't it? What more have you got to lose?'

'That's true. I haven't got anything left to lose, not really. And you're sure about this then?'

'Absolutely, you've just got to go for it.'

'Alright, then.' He was now standing on his feet and running his hands nervously through his hair. The other three rose as well and he suddenly wrapped his arms around all of them.

'Thank you. I honestly don't know where I'd be without you boys.' He pulled away from them and Remus clapped a hand on his shoulder and Sirius rolled his eyes. 'You'd be a bloody fucking idiot, that’s for sure.'

'Is he not still one, though?'

'Enough of that, now. You've still got to tell us about how she ended up in the closet with you in the first place!'

'Well, she shows up out of nowhere and I pretty much forget everything that I'm supposed to be doing-'

'I bloody well knew it.'

_third_

(friday / 6.46PM)

After some pretty clever wandwork, James was now casually leaning up against the wall, letting the snitch flutter by his head and intermittently checking his watch. He was waiting near the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower, almost completely hidden from view as several of the professors ran down the seventh floor hallway towards the Divination Corridor to determine the source of an explosion that had occurred only minutes before.

Soon enough, the hallway was completely empty. James shoved the snitch back in his pocket and moved to look around the corner, but saw nothing. After quickly returning to his perch against the wall, he looked at his watch and said, 'Too early, still. A few more minutes at least.'

At the sound of soft footsteps coming down the hallway, James panicked and looked up, only to see Lily Evans walking towards him. His face lit up. Seeing her always had such an effect on him that he wouldn't have been able to tell you what day it was let alone how many minutes he was supposed to wait before moving onto the next phase of the plan.

'Potter, there you are!' Lily exclaimed, jogging over to catch up to him. 'Alright, Evans? What can I do for you?' He had a soft smile on his face as he looked down at her.

'I was actually hoping we could talk about-' The second explosion hit. Lily was so surprised by the sudden, loud noise that her whole body trembled. 'What in the bloody hell was that?' She yelled and looked toward James who had barely moved, but was now looking down the hallway. 'Bugger,' he cursed. 'Sorry Evans, time to go!' He grabbed her by the hand and gently pulled her in the opposite direction to the North Tower.

'Potter, slow down! Where are we going?' She had to run to keep up with him.

'No time to explain! I'm running late and now we have to hide!'

'What are you talking about? What was that?' She waved her arm around, gesturing back the way they came.

'Oh, that? I've got no clue, Evans.'

'I don’t believe you, Potter!' She was breathless and her voice was full of laughter. She hadn't at all managed the accusatory tone she had planned on using, as she had been caught off guard by the look in his eyes and the feel of his hand in hers. He turned to grin at her.

'I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about! Now, into the closet we go!' They had reached a small broom closet and James had yanked the door right open and hustled quickly inside, pulling Lily in behind him.

James pulled the door shut and pressed his ear to it. Lily did the very same thing. 'What are we listening for?' She whispered.

'Filch will be coming this way any second. He always checks the hallways after an incident like this, always hoping to catch us in the act.'

'Oh, I can hear footsteps! That must be him!' They were side-by-side now in the very cramped broom closet, Lily's shoulder pressed to his arm. James motioned for her to keep quiet as they waited for the sound of Filch's retreating footsteps. As soon as he was far enough away, Lily spoke again. 'You must be up to something really bad if you're going to such lengths to keep from getting caught.' She looked up at him as she spoke, a cheeky smirk on her face.

'Nah, nothing so bad. I just don't want to get caught because its Quidditch tomorrow and I can't really afford the detention.'

'So, you're really not going to tell me what it is that you've done?'

'Nope! You'll just have to wait and find out like everybody else.'

They had both turned to face each other and James had finally taken notice of just how close together they actually were. It was still very dark in the broom closet but she was close enough to him that he could make out every detail of her face. He could smell the sweet scent of her perfume. He noticed the way her chest heaved on account of having run so fast and so far, the way her neck curved as she looked up at him. He felt her foot brush up against his own. A furious blush was rising against his neck and he could only hope it was too dark for her to take notice.

She hadn't noticed. She was too busy noticing him. He was so tall she barely reached to his shoulder and so had to crane her neck to look in his eyes. She could smell him, too. He had somehow always managed to smell just like the forest, like the rain, like leather… It was all just so _James_. He had such an effect on her, and when he was this close, too close and not close enough all at the same time, she could barely breathe. His hair had been tussled on account of the run and so was falling into his eyes. His shirt was only half-tucked and his tie was crooked. He moved to lean his shoulder against the door.

In an effort to recover from what had turned into an awkward silence, James spoke, 'You don't mind if we hide in here for a bit? Filch'll be back in a few minutes to check the hallways again so we won't be able to make a run for it until at least 30 seconds after his last check.'

'No, I don't mind…' Lily replied in a soft voice. James was looking at his watch, not at her. She could not tear her eyes away from his face. 'We shouldn't have to wait too long, the lads will give us the all-clear once Filch is sufficiently distracted.'

'How will they know where to find us?' He still wasn't meeting her eye. 'They'll just know. This is the Hiding Closet.' There was a matter-of-fact way about the way he said it, so cocky and confident, and with the kind of smirk on his lips that made her want to kiss it away.

'The Hiding Closet? What even- actually, I don't want to know!' She laughed and crossed her arms across her chest, trying to keep her hands busy.

'Um, so…' James started, all nerves again. 'You wanted to talk to me about something?'

'Oh, yes! I did.' She had started twisting her hands around the fabric of her sweater. 'Um, well… I just…' She took a deep breath and forced herself to look up at him again. He was leaning in to her, a small furrow in his brow. He was worried. She smiled to put him at ease. He did too.

Filled with a sudden burst of confidence, she started again. 'You've been avoiding me. At least, I think you have been. I mean, I'm sure you have been!' She was rambling. She took another deep breath and went on, 'You asked to reschedule the prefects meeting, which was fine. But then you didn't show up to the meeting we were supposed to have about rescheduling the prefects meeting. And then you've been completely ignoring me at meals and during class and in the Common Room… I just… Did I do something wrong?'

She was looking at him with such concern in her eyes. 'No!' He almost yelled at her, it came out so quickly as though he had no control over his own mouth. 'No! Of course not! I'm sorry I'm yelling at you… Just no. You didn't do anything. Of course you didn't.'

She softened at his words, where he only tensed more. 'Then what? Because I thought that after Hogsmeade… Well I had hoped… I guess I don't know. I'm not making very much sense am I?'

He shook his head. 'I am definitely struggling to keep up.'

She let out a soft laugh and looked up at him once again. His hand was softly resting against the door, holding his body upright in the small space. He had inched closer to her at her every word. Then, she reached up on her toes and brought her hand up to brush the hair from his eyes. 'I am mad for you, James Potter.'

'Well, that's very nice of you.'

She let out another soft laugh. 'It is?'

'Well, yeah. Considering that I'm mad for you, too. Always have been, in fact.'

'Are you sure? You've been acting so differently lately and with this week… I just thought that maybe you had changed your mind.' She looked away from him and fiddled with her jumper once again.

'I'm sorry I was avoiding you. I thought that maybe our Hogsmeade date had gone poorly and that maybe you had changed your mind.'

'I didn't mean to give you that impression. I was just nervous, yeah? Because I'm proper mad for you and I didn't want to come off like a raging lunatic.' She laughed, anxiously so.

He brought his thumb and forefinger to her chin and gently lifted her head so she was looking into his eyes once again. 'Don't worry, I always come off like a raging lunatic. But that's only really because I am proper mad for you, Lily Evans.' She smiled the kind of smile that lasts a lifetime.

'You should probably do something about it, then.'

She wanted him to kiss her. This was it. He started to lean down and she rose onto her toes to meet him halfway. His hand had moved from her chin to rest at the nape of her neck and she rested her palm on his chest to lean into him. Her lips were only inches from his…

'Prongs! You there? We've got to-'

The door was thrust open and the rush of light blinded her. She flinched in surprise, a gasp frozen on her lips as she realised James had fallen to the floor.

'Ouch.'

This was not it.

_fourth_

(saturday / 10.54AM)

'Hello, ladies. Join us won't you?' Sirius winked at the 7th Year Gryiffindor girls as they made their way up through the stands. It was time for Quidditch, the very first game of the school year. Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw. Sirius was sitting beside Remus, with Peter perched on the bench behind them.

Lily made her way up the stairs to the empty seats beside the boys and brought with her Dorcas Meadows and Mary Macdonald.

'Morning, lads.' Lily took the seat next to Sirius and Mary and Dorcas sat in the empty seats next to Peter. 'Hot chocolate, ladies?' Peter whipped out a full thermos and started pouring a mug for each of the girls. 'Oh, Pettigrew. You are a lifesaver!' It was unseasonably chilly for mid-October.

Remus and Sirius were whispering furiously to each other. Lily was staring out onto the pitch. 'Are they out yet?' She asked. 'Any minute, now.' Sirius replied, nudging Remus in an effort to get him to shut up. He did not. 'So, Lily…' Remus started. 'How has your morning been so far?'

'Um… Fine?' She replied, confusion written all over her face.

'Anything interesting happen?'

'Um… No? Why?'

'The tosser.'

'Such a bloody idiot.'

'I knew he wouldn't do it!'

Before she had a chance to ask them what was going on, the Gryffindor Quidditch team zoomed out from the locker rooms followed closely by the Ravenclaw team. Every one rose to their feet and cheered while both teams circled the pitch as the announcer introduced the players. As the crowd settled back into their seats, the Ravenclaw team circled over the stands showing off their impressive formation. Its just so happened that each of them had woken up this morning to find their hair had been charmed a glittering Gryffindor Red.

'Nice of the Ravenclaw team to show their support, innit?' Peter sniggered and high-fived Sirius.

'I suppose this was your doing, then?' Lily turned to Sirius and asked. She was smirking again and that sparkle was back in her eyes. She was trying very hard not to laugh at the misfortune of the poor Ravenclaw Quidditch team, whose only offense was daring to face Gryffindor for the first match of the year.

'No, of course not. Why would you think that? Listen to me for a minute, Evans. You've got to be the one to do this, alright? You've got to just grab him and lay one on him because I promise you he'll never do it himself.' Sirius had stunned her into silence.

Dorcas chimed in from behind her, 'Marlene's been telling her that for weeks. But Lily's being an idiot about it, as per usual.' Lily shot an evil glare her way and she stopped talking. Peter mumbled under his breath, 'She was being an idiot, you say? Sounds like a match made in heaven to me.' Mary laughed and almost spat out her hot chocolate.

Remus continued on. 'Sorry to be so candid about it, Lily, but honestly? You're both being so silly about this. What have you got to lose? Just go for it, yeah?'

'Recycling advice now, Moony?'

'Shut it, Padfoot.'

'Well, it worked the first time.'

'Did it, though?'

The players were still circling the pitch, waiting for the referees to get organised for the game. Lily stared down at her fidgeting hands. 'I suppose he told you lot what happened in the closet?'

'We sort of go the gist, yeah.' Remus, ever the gentleman, left out the fact that James and given them a play-by-play of the entire incident in an effort not to embarrass her.

'Well, I didn't see him for the rest of the night. Now I understand that was because you were oh so terribly busy with secret business, of course.' Sirius winked at her before she continued on. 'So… I thought I might catch him this morning before the match. I mean, he has managed to corner me before every game every year since he started playing on the team and has always tried to weasel his way into getting a good luck kiss…'

'Don't worry, you don't have to remind us. It's like clockwork, every bloody match. _How about a kiss for good luck, Evans? In your dreams, Potter!_ ' Sirius mimicked them with an exasperated sigh.

Rolling his eyes, Remus said, 'And this morning?'

'Nothing! I didn't even see him!'

Remus, Sirius, and Peter exchanged cringe-worthy looks. Mary leaned forward and placed a comforting hand on Lily's shoulder, 'No time like the present, love,' she encouraged. Curious as to what she meant, Lily looked up to the direction of her eyes and found James flying over to the stands and talking with a few of the younger Gryffindors.

Lily took a moment to collect herself. She pressed her palms into her eyes and whispered to herself. 'You can do this, Lily. 10 seconds of courage is all it takes.' She took a breath and then looked up, stood up, and walked down the stairs to the edge of the stands, leaving three gobsmacked boys behind her.

She stood tall, leaned over the railing and whistled. This caught James' attention and he flew over to her. He hovered just below her so she was looking down at him. She was wearing that same stunningly beautiful smile and he lit up at the sight of her.

'And what can I do for you?' James asked her, not taking his eyes from her face.

Gryffindor courage filled her veins and she did not falter. 'How 'bout a kiss for good luck, Potter?'

He smirked and lifted his eyebrows. 'In your dreams, Evans.'

This was it.

She reached down, grabbed a fistful of his shirt and pulled him up to her. In one swift motion, she kissed him gently, softly, lingeringly… One of his hands was panted firmly on his broom and the other rested on the railing, only their lips were touching. She was electrified by the feeling of his lips on hers. All she could feel was him, all she could see was him. J _ames. James. James._ The kiss… It was like one of those Hollywood kisses, perfectly perfect in every way. It felt meant to be. It felt right. It felt like they had shared a million kisses before now. Like this is where she was meant to be all along. All the Gryffindors around them clapped and cheered, the 7th Years rose on their feet and jumped and screamed in triumph. Some of the 5th Year students threw red and gold confetti over them.

James' heart was beating so fast. _Lily. Lily. Lily._ He ever so slightly stretched up to deepen the kiss. Lily smiled into his continued embrace. He was desperate to be nearer to her but he did not dare move more than slightly so not to ruin his balance, or hers. She was leaning far over the railing, still holding him close to her by the fabric of his uniform.

The rest of the Gryffindor team zoomed past them blowing a gale and cheering all the while. The cape of his robes billowed in the wind, her hair softly wrapped around his shoulders tickling his ears. The tassels of her Gryffindor scarf were tangled around her arm. They broke apart at the sound of the whistle, signifying the start of the match.

She pulled back from him gently and smoothed out the front of his uniform. His mouth was hanging slightly open and his eyes were only just now fluttering open. His beautifully hazel eyes stared back at her in awe once again. She laughed softly. 'Be my girl, Evans?'

'Win the match, Potter. Then we'll talk.' She was going to make him work for it. Of course she was. She wouldn't be herself if she didn't. She had never given him anything so easily all the time he'd known her. He wore a cocksure smile when he flew off to join his teammates. She knew it was going to be a tough match, Ravenclaw had a good team this year. But she also knew that James Potter's ego was never going to let him back down from a challenge.

_fifth_

(saturday / 1.58PM)

Lily, Dorcas, and Mary had hung back after the match and were now joined by their fourth roommate, Marlene McKinnon, who played chaser on the team. They were leisurely walking up the stairs to get back to Gryffindor Tower.

'You should have seen his face… He was massively blushing but had this wickedly triumphant grin. What did you say to him?' Marlene playfully nudged Lily, who was blushing now too. 'I sort of implied that if he won the match that I'd be his girlfriend…'

Marlene gasped and jumped with excitement. 'You did not!'

'Oh, she did. Marls, you should have seen it!'

'This is excellent news! James Potter has never turned down a challenge in his life! And as if he was ever going to lose. Not with a fantastic chaser such as myself on the team!'

'Of course not, love. The win today was all because of you, I'm sure of it.' Dorcas rolled her eyes at Marlene. She poked her tongue out in retaliation.

While the other two continued to jest, Mary linked arms with Lily as they went up the last few stairs. 'So, this is it then?' She said, with an encouraging smile. 'Yeah, I think so.'

Soon enough they had come to the Fat Lady's portrait and upon entering the Common Room they saw the victory party was already in full swing. A large banner showing a roaring lion was hanging from the ceiling. Streamers and confetti were draped over the walls, balloons were bunched in the corners, pixies were floating across the room showering everyone with red and gold glitter, music was playing and everyone was drinking and dancing and having a fabulous time. Marlene was quickly beckoned over to join the rest of the team and Dorcas and Mary headed straight for the bar which looked to be stocked with all sorts of liquors pilfered from Hogsmeade, a Marauder specialty. Lily had noticed a group of students waiting in line.

'Hey, Lily!'

'Eloise! Hello, love! What are you up to?'

Eloise and her fellow 1st Years were sat on the floor surrounded by all sorts of red and gold face paints. Each of them were currently working on painting the face of another student, and it was only now that Lily realised several of the others were displaying team colours and player's numbers as well as cartoon lions on their cheeks and foreheads.

'What a wonderful idea, girls! Everyone's looking fantastic.'

'Thanks, Lily! Would you like us to do something for you?'

'Oh, that would be lovely but I'm happy to wait in line.' She was interrupted by several of the 5th and 6th Year boys who all started yelling in protest. She laughed.

'Alright lads and ladies, make some space for the Head Girl!' The boys gestured for her to go ahead to the empty space in front of Eloise. 'Thank you kindly, gentlemen. Such wonderful manners!'

'Anything for our lovely Head Girl. Right everyone?' Everyone in line as well as most of the people standing around the group stopped to bow and salute Lily. She laughed again and saluted them back. This had become somewhat of a tradition for Lily and the Gryffindors. Hogwarts had not seen two Gryffindor Head Students in quite a long time and so the members of said house were very proud, indeed. And they all adored Lily, of course. And, no matter how hard he tried, James had not managed to get any of the younger students to salute him the way they did her. Which only made them do it more.

Lily plopped down on the floor in front of Eloise and started inspecting her paints. 'This really is quite clever, you know.' Eloise blushed at Lily's praise and the other girls glowed beside her. 'Its really just a simple charm! Now, what would you like?'

'Well yours looks lovely, can I have something simple like that?'

'Of course!' The young girl had red and gold stars covering the highest point of her cheekbone and had painted her lips a matching glittering red. She moved to do the same for Lily.

_sixth_

(saturday / 2.14PM)

She had not spotted him yet. But he had spotted her. She had been caught up since walking through the portrait hole so hadn't noticed him or the way he was watching her. In all fairness, he never could help it. His eyes gravitated towards her always. And now he knew what it felt like to be close to her and to have her lips on his. He stood there, leaning against their makeshift bar with his eyes glazed over and a soft smile on his lips. His heart glowed just thinking about her and so his eyes followed as she took a turn about the room, chatting with the younger students.

Lily had removed her outerwear on account of the heated common room. She was wearing a very clearly handmade, oversized, red sweater tucked into a pair of high-waisted bell-bottoms. She bent over to talk to the first-years and James got a fantastic view of her arse. Her face was all shine and glitter, how could he manage to tear his eyes away from her now?

'I told her she should wear those jeans more often, they do wonders for her bum.'

'Bloody hell! Don't sneak up on me like that, McKinnon!'

'Wotcher, Captain.'

She turned to face the bar and ordered a drink from Remus, who was manning the alcohol. 'Pass me a shot of Gigglewater when you can, Lupin.'

'Coming right up, Marlene.'

'You look fabulous by the way.' Remus tipped his imaginary hat to her. He had a red bandana tied across his forehead and wore Sirius' old Quidditch jersey which was much too small and much too tight for him. Sirius had been banned from the team since the incident with Snape and the Whomping Willow.

'Lay off, McKinnon. He's taken.' Sirius said from beside Remus, winking at him as he lent back on the table.

After taking her drink Marlene turned back to James, who was predictably still staring at Lily until she stood right in front of him blocking his line of sight. 'I know what you're thinking. _Why hasn't she come over here? Oh no! Did she change her mind already?_ ' Marlene mocked him using a whiny voice and laughed at herself. Remus and Sirius were laughing behind James' back.

'Shut it, McKinnon.'

'The only reason she hasn't come over here is because we literally just rocked up and she hasn't seen you yet. Just give her a sec, yeah? And if you're worried she might want to back out of your "deal"? Don't. Last I checked she's still completely mad for you.' James shared a smile with Marlene before playfully punching her on the shoulder and they both turned back to face Remus and Sirius.

'It definitely seems that way, doesn't it?' James said, nervously glancing back at Lily.

'Plus, I heard from a very reliable source that she couldn't take her eyes off you the entire game.'

'Was that reliable source yourself, by any chance?'

'I said what I said, Prongs.'

'Heads up, lads. Here she comes.' Remus whispered. Marlene had waved Lily over and the girl in question was walking towards them. She still has not spotted James as he was blocked from her view.

'Hi Remus, got any whiskey?'

'Fire or Irish?'

'Irish, please.'

'Coming right up, love.'

During this brief interlude, Marlene (upon Sirius' subtle interfering) had strategically sunk down to the floor, climbing underneath the table to the other side of the bar. The move had its desired effect, James and Lily were now side by side.

She turned to face him, whiskey in hand. 'There you are! Hi!' She smiled instantly upon seeing him, reaching out to rest her hand on his arm. He wore dark jeans and a Gryffindor-style rugby shirt with the collar turned up. She noticed some confetti had wedged itself in his messy fringe and so reached out and stood on her toes to brush it out of his hair. He blushed at her touch.

'Nice match today, Potter.' She was back on the soles of her feet again and had stepped slightly back from him. 'I know, it was cracker wasn't it? Not only did I happen to play terribly well, we also won the match. Did you happen to notice that, Evans?' James, always quick to recover, wore that cocksure smile again.

She smiled coyly up at him. 'I did. Best wishes for the Quidditch Cup this year, yeah?'

'Don't play coy with me, love. Last I checked we had a deal.'

She feigned confusion. 'I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about.' She took a sip of her drink, still staring into his eyes. He smiled and shook his head at her. They both stood there for a few moments, staring into each others eye's looking joyously content and relaxed together.

'What is happening?' Sirius whispered in Remus' ear. 'Is this it?'

'I think this is it.'

'Both of you shut up!'

James and Lily did not even notice the other three were there. She rested her drink back on the table and took a few steps to close the distance between them. If she were to raise herself onto her toes again, their noses would brush. He ran his hand tenderly down her arm and tangled his fingers with hers. He was easy and comfortable after the win and so was displaying more confidence with her than usual. Her face was glowing with glitter and with joy. She was biting her lip to keep from smiling widely at him again. This only drew his attention to the deep red they had been painted, the same gloriously dark copper of her hair. It was a few more moments before Lily spoke again. 'You caught me! I was only teasing…'

'Well, I would hope so. Have you got something to tell me then?'

She didn't miss a beat. 'I'll be your girl, Potter. 'Course I will. As if you even had to ask.'

'It's 'bout time, Evans. I've only been waiting several years for this moment.'

'Oh you have, have you?'

'Indeed I have. Now hush, Evans. This is it.'

'Yeah… This is it.'


End file.
